Major refurbishment and improvements works at Devon County Council’s Library in Sidmouth will get underway next month (September).
The transformation work will require the library to be closed from Thursday 12 September for just over five weeks, with the new-look library due to reopen on Wednesday 23 October.
During that period alternative arrangements are being put in place by Devon County Council to minimise any inconvenience, including additional hours at nearby Ottery St Mary Library, which will be open an extra one and a half days a week on Wednesdays and Thursdays...
Devon County Council’s first annual public health report just published, sets out an ambitious programme of work to improve health and promote health equality across the County.
The document takes a reflective look at the past six years of public health, and examines how it well it has done in improving the health of people in Devon.
Overall, it shows the picture of health across Devon is improving, and that people generally enjoy a good quality of health and live longer than the national average. The report also highlights some areas where further improvements could be...
Essential improvement work is to be carried out on pavements in Exeter High Street next month.
The 11 week scheme, which will improve the surface of the footway on the majority of High Street, will start from the upper end, near Boots, on Monday 9 September.
No major excavation work will be carried out, but granite paving slabs which are cracked, loose or rocking will be replaced in order to prevent them becoming a safety issue.
The opportunity will also be taken to carry out some surface drainage work improvements.
A campaign has been launched to dispel the myths of ‘natural’ and ‘organic’ hand rolling tobacco, as it is revealed that more South West smokers roll their own cigarettes.
More people are smoking hand rolling tobacco than manufactured cigarettes in the South West, but many are unaware that although hand rolling tobacco is often marketed as less harmful than manufactured cigarettes, it carries the same serious health risks.
The South West Campaign, launched by Smoke Free South West with support from Devon County Council aims to bust the myths around ‘natural’ and ‘organic’...
More than 3,000 people in Devon have so far been helped with advice and support from Travel Devon Roadshows.
More than 120 of the free roadshows, organised by Devon County Council, have been held in Exeter, Exmouth, Newton Abbot and Totnes in the past 15 months.
The Travel Devon roadshows are one of the projects developed through Devon County Council’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund which aims to support jobs and businesses by tackling congestion and promoting greater use of sustainable travel.
The free roadshows enable staff to speak to Travel Advisors about...
Devon has been selected to host this year’s national Rural Health Conference, being held at Sandy Park, Exeter, on Friday, 18 October.
Organised by the Rural Health Network, and supported by Devon County Council, the theme of this year’s conference is “Challenging Times – One Year On” – working together to deliver effective rural health services.
Councillor Andrea Davis, Devon County Council’s Cabinet Member for health and wellbeing said: “It’s an honour to be hosting this event, which is highly significant for Devon and its population, as one of the largest rural...
East Devon District Council and Devon County Council have worked together again to put the sum of £1.10 per elector into a ‘Parishes Together Fund’ grants scheme that Town and Parish Councils can apply for. The overall pot of cash available amounts to nearly £115,000.
The funding is available to Town and Parish Councils working together and involving the community to try and solve local issues. All applications must be submitted jointly from two or more parishes. Money could be used for anything from permanent items to events, networks and one-off costs. The deadline for the first...
“Practice at the home is unacceptable,” says Devon County Council following an Ofsted report, yet to be published, that is expected to describe services at one of its children’s facilities as inadequate.
Steps have already been taken to address Ofsted’s concerns within the home at Rifford Road, Exeter, and ‘moving on’ plans for the three young residents are being worked on.
New management has been brought in from another of the Council’s children’s homes, rated ‘good’ by Ofsted.
Prior to the inspection, Barnardos had been commissioned to conduct a thorough review of...
Devon County Council is set to look again at how it supports young people across the county through its youth services.
The major review is intended to make sure that youth services are properly focused on those in greatest need and deliver the best possible value for money.
Announcing the review, Councillor Will Mumford, Cabinet Member responsible for children’s social care and youth services, said:
“The Youth Service is a key part of the offer we deliver to young people and to communities.
“But it is clear that the service needs to change if we are to...
Residents in Sidmouth have been helping shape redevelopment plans for their library.
A recent consultation, which attracted more than 300 responses, aimed to gather the view of residents on how they would like to see the library facilities improved, including what services and activities should be on offer.
Comments and suggestions were looked at carefully, and the designs have been amended to reflect the consultation responses.
The results showed lots of support for improving access for children, young people and their families and plans include moving the children...
